Nordre Øyeren warming up for the autumn

I think we may be up for a very good autumn around Nordre Øyeren. As I wrote yesterday there are lots of ducks and geese using Svellet – the ducks (mostly Teal) are feeding there whilst the geese come into rest but are feeding on nearby harvest fields. Yesterday I discovered one of the fields that the geese (primarily Barnacles) are using and here there were also many raptors and Cranes. I assume there is lots of spilt corn which the geese and Cranes like but also rodents because the raptors (3 juvenile Marsh Harriers and at least 9 Common Buzzards) seemed to have no problem finding food. The harriers were quartering the field but the Buzzards were mostly just walking around and pouncing on prey. At least one juvenile Peregrine and 2 Hobbies were also in the area and it was particularly birdy. Amongst the geese was an interesting Canada Goose that I first noticed flying in when it was noticeably darker and slightly smaller than its compatriots but once on the field it was more difficult to find and the raptors, and my search for something rare, took my attention and I never formed an opinion on the goose. I was hoping to find a harrier other than a Marsh but failed although I am sure that with regular coverage something else will turn up. I also expect that Rough-legged Buzzards will soon discover the field as they migrate through the area.

There are rather surprisingly still some unharvested fields as well and one of these clearly also had a lot of rodents as another two Marsh Harriers were constantly hunting over it. Both these birds were second calendar birds – a male and a female.

If the stubble fields remain as stubble (i.e they don’t get ploughed this autumn) then they could continue to attract both geese and raptors until November or December depending on the weather. The passage of proper wild geese has yet to start and if Pink-feet discover these fields then there could be many thousands of geese still to come.

Numbers of waders using Svellet have fallen dramatically but a Black-tailed Godwit was briefly present as was the Little Gull and terns so there is still non-waterfowl potential. A Great White Egret was also present nearby but only visible very distantly.

2cy male Marsh Harrier (sivhauk) with a Hooded Crown (kråke). The dark secondary feathers are remaining juvenile feathers whilst the grey feathers are adult feathers

2 1cy/juvenile Marsh Harriers in the birdy field having a rest from their quartering

2cy female Marsh Harrier. Two generations of secondaries are clearly visible

the 2cy male quartering the unharvest field

many hundreds of Barnacle (hvitkinngjess) and some Greylags (grågjess) on their way from the field where they had been feeding to Svellet for a rest

this Common Buzzard (musvåk) was hovering over the unharvested field whereas those using the stubble field were mostly just walking around

the interesting Canada Goose. It has a dark breast and darker flanks compared to the normal feral Canadas and is also slightly smaller. It is possible that it is a wild bird but there are also feral birds of other subspecies and strange hybrids knocking around in Holland so it is impossible to know especially with only these grainy photos

a late(ish) Red-backed Shrike (tornskate)

Back to birds

Despite my best intentions I have spent quite some time this week with Honey Buzzards with a few checks on the regular nest but also trying to triangulate on a nest that I believe must exist in Maridalen. I am now within a just a few hundred metres of it and with luck will locate it tomorrow…

Other than that there is an increase in migrants in Maridalen with a few pipits, wagtails, Whinchats and Wheatears on the stubble fields and the organic vegetable patch still hosting Red-backed Shrikes and best of all a couple of Bluethroats.

The Maridalen swan saga continues. After the Mute Swan pair was driven off leaving behind a small cygnet (which I have not seen for a couple of weeks and presume has perished) something serious has now happened with the Whooper Swan family. On the 18^th the pair were at Kirkeby and in Nesbukta there was a single, lost looking cygnet. I then had no sightings of any swans until today when the pair were again at Kirkeby but with no sign of the cygnet. Prior to the 18^th they had seemed like a very tight family unit with the adults leading the two cygnets around and never leaving their side so what happened on the 18^th? Why would the pair abandon one of the young and what happened to the other? Were they attacked by a fox or dog? Or have the pair themselves turned on their own young? They are a very aggressive pair with their frequent attacks on the Mutes and any other Whoopers that dare visit Maridalen in the breeding season. Have they finally lost it and once their own young reached a certain size seen them as a threat? They are getting on now and have bred since 2010 but after rearing at least 40 young between 2010 to 2021 things have changed and since then they have struggled with 3 fledged young in 2023 their only success in this period.

Water levels at Årnestangen and Svellet have been very high but started falling again from the weekend and a visit to Svellet today revealed lots of birds on newly (re)exposed mudbanks with 160 Ruff a very good count and out of 10 species in total a Black-tailed Godwit was the highlight.

Bluethroat (blåstrupe) in Maridalen

Red-backed Shrikes (tornskate) are still finding lots to eat in the organic vegetable patch

the Whooper Swan (sangsvane) pair and a single cygnet alone 1.5km away on 18 August. I have seen the adults again today, although not yesterday but have not seen the cygnet

the family on the 15th

one of three Three-toed Woodpeckers (tretåspett) that entertained my whilst I was on Honey Buzzard watch

Checking out the breeding raptors

Back in Oslo and procrastinating away I am using dog walking duties as a means of checking out on my breeding raptors. Yesterday, saw me visiting the Honey Buzzard nest and today was a final attempt to find the Hobby nest.

The Honey Buzzard young still look healthy although a very obvious difference in the development of the two birds is perhaps more than just an age difference and could suggest food shortages mean one of them (the older one) is getting more food. I looked under the nest and saw no discarded wasp comb which I take as a bad sign. Walking up to the nest area I glimpsed an adult gliding towards the nest but was unable to see if it was the male or the female although based on the last two years the female will probably have already bailed. An hour and a quarter at the nest revealed only the young doing nothing other than sitting still with no wing stretching or squabbling. On the way back to the car I saw two dark HB thermalling high over the nest site that quickly disappeared from view and then the male appeared low over the trees by the nest and also quickly thermalled out of view. I could not make out if the first two birds were a male and female but assume they were non/failed breeders moving over the area or perhaps prospecting for a future nest site.

 On the Hobby front it was a case of bad news and good news. The good news is that I located the nest and could confirm that there have been young, the bad news is that the confirmation came from the presence of a dead juvenile on the ground under the nest. The carcass was right by a path and the nest right over it and it was only seeing the carcass that allowed me to find the nest. The nest was incredibly will hidden and impossible to see from anywhere else other than under it. I had no live birds in the area so have no idea whether any other young have fledged although if they had then I would have expected to hear them. My last sighting in the nest area was 16 June and I have visited since then without joy so it was a real surprise that such a large juvenile was there which would have meant the adults would have been caring for it and bringing food for the last month. The carcass still looked fairly fresh although had been eaten at and there were droppings from a mammal on it. My theories for how it ended on the ground are either being blown out during high winds or perhaps a Goshawk attacked the nest resulting in one of the young jumping out and the others being eaten?? My failure to locate any adults (especially hearing them) on previous visits is also strange and makes me wonder if one of the adults also perished at some point such that just a single adult was bringing food but that is pure speculation.

 

Otherwise, I have had very few other raptors when in Maridalen although it is the end of the month that is usually the most productive and there is little in the way of migrants other than a few Whinchat and Red-backed Shrikes. The two baby Whooper Swans are growing and being well guarded by their parents but I have not seen the lone baby Mute Swan again.

The two Honey Buzzard (vepsevåk) young on the nest. The head of the closest bird is still covered in white downy feathers whereas the other, older, bird has lost most of them

very poor pictures of the two HB that thermalled high over the nest.

the male from the breeding birds that appeared out of the forest by the nest

the unfortunate proof that Hobbies (lerkefalk) have indeed bred in Maridalen this year

the carcass of a juvenile Hobby

fresh droppings of a mammal that I assume had been feeding on the carcass

here, I have turned over the carcass

the nest was very difficult to find but through the binoculars I could see lots of white feathers around the nest

one of four 1st year Red-backed Shrike (tornskate) that as is most recent years are finding lots to eat in a cooperative organic vegetable patch

a juvenile (male?) House Sparrow (gråspurv) was with the Tree Sparrows (pilfink) at Kirkeby and indicates repeated breeding of this once mythical species (for me at least) in Maridalen

Summer holidays 2025

Summer holidays have begun and per tradition our first week is at a cabin south of Oslo near Hulvik. Butterflies are in short supply so far except for Queen of Spain Fritillaries (sølvkåpe) which are by far the most numerous species and in numbers I have never seen before.

Evening drives with Jr have become another tradition and our first one gave a good haul with 4 Moose including a mother and tiny calf, 3 Roe Deer, 2 Badgers and 3 unidentified small bats. I started with animals as that is Jr’s priority but on the bird front we had 2 Corncrake, 2 Quail, 5 Nightjar, 3 Tawny Owls, 2 Long-eared Owls, 3 Marsh Warblers and quite a few Woodcocks.

The best experience came as we were nearly back at the cabin when we found a pair of Nightjar seemingly nesting. It was as dark as it gets by then but I will spend more time with them and hopefully with the use of the thermal imager get an insight into their secretive lives.

Red-backed Shrikes are scare this year with just 2 males seen one of which was singing so unpaired but the other probably had a female on the nest.

This is the only picture I took of a Nightjar (nattravn) with the superzoom at 00:10. I should probably have taken some more but was concentrating on video

Male Red-backed Shrikes are scare (tornskate)

The last week in Oslo

Before I bore most of you with a butterfly post it is about time with another catch up of local Oslo birding.

Hobbies are back in Maridalen and have clearly chosen a new but yet to be discovered nest. I have seen a single Honey Buzzard over Maridalen and the nest of the last two years has had green branches added to it although no birds are on the nest yet.

The last Lapwing nest in Maridalen is now empty and I think that the young have hatched due to the behaviour of the parents but the crop is now too high to see. One evening whilst the nest was still occupied a fox with Lapwing young on its mind walked through the field. I have a long video of the event and the adults were very effective at attacking the fox and also calling their young away.

The four Little Ringed Plover eggs have hatched and the parents are doing a great job keeping them alive. They deserve a separate post though as there is a lot to see with them.

Nocturnal singers are slowly increasing with at least 4 Marsh Warblers in Maridalen and a Nightjar in an unexpected location that showed very well.

Arctic Terns remain on the lake including the 3cy bird with the missing tail feather and it is fun watching them on every visit to the lake.

A video of the Nightjar (nattravn) to start with

adult Lapwings (vipe)trying to chase off a fox whose back is just visible amongst the buttercups

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this young Lapwing is nearly fully grown and was flapping its wings

my only Oslo Honey Buzzard (vepsevåk) so far this year

this pair with the male on the left were in Østfold

the Honey Buzzard nest from the last two years with fresh spruce branches added

Arctic Tern (rødnebbterne) with a mayfly in its sights

and about to be caught

Hobby (lerkefalk)

spot the Red-backed Shrike (tornskate). There has still not been any major arrival and I have not located any breeding pairs yes

A Blue Tit (blåmeis) nest jut above ground level

when a Chiffchaff (gransanger) flew up from by my feet I knew there must be a nest nearby and here it was

with a few young in it

Local catch up

Migration is ending now in Oslo and nocturnal trips and breeding birds will be the focus.

Breeding waders seem to be having a reasonable season. In addition to the Ringed Plovers that I have previously detailed I have found a Little Ringed Plovers nest, a couple of Common Sandpiper nests, Snipe are displaying at 2 locations in Maridalen and Lapwings in Maridalen keep surprising and seem to be having a good season. They are difficult to keep track of as once the young hatch they move around and hide in grass but I am confident there are four broods of young but quite possibly five with the latest just a day old when I first saw them, a pair is still incubating and another pair have been displaying but not to my knowledge made a nesting attempt. Question now is how many young will fledge.

This is the oldest brood on 22 May when they were already half grown.

female Little Ringed Plover (dverglo) on her nest

LRP nest and eggs.

Common Sandpiper (strandsnipe) nest again with 4 eggs. I found this nest when there were only 3 eggs

another Common Sand nest. As there are only 3 eggs I assume another will be laid. This nest was in a field whereas the other in woodland

Common Rosefinches seem to continue to decline with none recorded so far in Maridalen and just a couple in their stronghold of Sørkedalen. Surprisingly though a couple of brown, 1st summer, males are at Fornebu though and I managed to record them singing together.

Many species seem to have young early this year with broods of Long-tailed Tits and Starlings already on the wing.

I have only seen 3 Red-backed Shrikes tornskate) so far this year but they often don't come in force until June

young Starling (stær) with one of its parents

a young Long-tailed Tit (stjertmeis)

Wrynecks (vendehals) are now mostly silent -  the ones who have paired up at least - and difficult to find